I usually stop when I feel tired. In the past this caused me to stop at 5. Recently I jumped 9 times in one day. I felt fine in the end & felt like I could have jumped more but I had to leave for the day.

Think I may have raised some eyebrows by one of the instructors though... although no one told me to stop.

In the past one of my coaches did tell me the 5 was a good number for fun jumpers.

I really learned alot in that one day... improved my tracking position that I think would have taken longer if I didn't get to jump so many times in a row.

I think you've got the right attitude; if you stop feeling good, stop jumping. I think at your experience level, that's a reasonable standard. For an absolute newbie who's still on student status, the enthusiasm for jumping may outweigh the person's ability to absorb all the new information that's coming their way, so it may be reasonable to set a limit even if the student doesn't think they want to stop.

But hey, as long as you're keeping an eye on your physical and mental acuity and still feel sharp, enjoy it and jump as much (or as little) as you feel like.

If you feel fine doing it - no. But beware; adrenalin can often mask symptoms of exhaustion.

There is something I call the 'sunset zoo load phenomenon.' It works like this:

People have been jumping all day at a boogie, often after a night of partying. They're all tired but they're going to do one more jump then hit the bar. So they get on the sunset load. It gets pushed back since, well, at boogies the sunset load always gets pushed back.

So they take off just a bit after sunset. It's finally starting to cool off! Someone flashes the pilot for extra altitude, and he gives it to them since it's his last load of the day. The organizer was tired so he didn't do too much organizing on the ground, just told people where to go. "You've been doing this all day, right?"

Now exit comes along. And now you have 12 (or 20, or 30) people who are:

-tired -dehydrated -a bit hypoxic from the extra altitude -having trouble seeing (due to the low light and the hypoxia) -poorly prepped from that quick dirt dive -thinking about the bar and not the dive

This is generally a recipe for a dive that will not work well.

So yes, be sure to read your body and avoid that last load if you're not feeling up to it.

I think you've got the right attitude; if you stop feeling good, stop jumping. I think at your experience level, that's a reasonable standard. For an absolute newbie who's still on student status, the enthusiasm for jumping may outweigh the person's ability to absorb all the new information that's coming their way, so it may be reasonable to set a limit even if the student doesn't think they want to stop.

But hey, as long as you're keeping an eye on your physical and mental acuity and still feel sharp, enjoy it and jump as much (or as little) as you feel like.

If you feel fine doing it - no. But beware; adrenalin can often mask symptoms of exhaustion.

There is something I call the 'sunset zoo load phenomenon.' It works like this:

People have been jumping all day at a boogie, often after a night of partying. They're all tired but they're going to do one more jump then hit the bar. So they get on the sunset load. It gets pushed back since, well, at boogies the sunset load always gets pushed back.

So they take off just a bit after sunset. It's finally starting to cool off! Someone flashes the pilot for extra altitude, and he gives it to them since it's his last load of the day. The organizer was tired so he didn't do too much organizing on the ground, just told people where to go. "You've been doing this all day, right?"

Now exit comes along. And now you have 12 (or 20, or 30) people who are:

-tired -dehydrated -a bit hypoxic from the extra altitude -having trouble seeing (due to the low light and the hypoxia) -poorly prepped from that quick dirt dive -thinking about the bar and not the dive

This is generally a recipe for a dive that will not work well.

So yes, be sure to read your body and avoid that last load if you're not feeling up to it.

I was trying to hit 100 jumps at WFFC, and I stopped jumping that day not really because I was too tired, but more because I really wasn't enjoying it. It became about the numbers, about "gotta get one more in" than jumping to enjoy jumping. So I called it a day.

Re: [Nightingale] How many skydives is too much in 1 day?
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For me, 7 was enough.

I was trying to hit 100 jumps at WFFC, and I stopped jumping that day not really because I was too tired, but more because I really wasn't enjoying it. It became about the numbers, about "gotta get one more in" than jumping to enjoy jumping. So I called it a day.

Ditto. 7 is the most I've done in a day and I could've done more but I'd already had plenty of fun for the day and... well that and I'm not made of money.

In the past one of my coaches did tell me the 5 was a good number for fun jumpers

That's nonsesne, you can't make a blanket statement like that. Maybe for your coach, 5 is their limit, but that's a personal thing and there are a ton of considerations.

What the weather like? Hotter days will take more out of your per jump, so fewer jumps is the way to go.

Are you packing yourself, or using a packer? How hard is your rig to pack? Again, look at the physical output of packing, and factor that into how many jumps you can make.

What about your physical conditioning? How much sleep did you get the night before? Are you staying hydrated and fed?

The list goes on, but I have to say that 5 jumps is a very light day of jumping for most. As others have mentioned, pay attention to yourself and be sure to say 'when' before you reach your limit, not after.

If you want to make more jumps, consider the above factors and account for them. Get to bed early the night before, be sure to bring drinks and healthy snacks to the DZ, and make sure you're in good shape.

In the past one of my coaches did tell me the 5 was a good number for fun jumpers

That's nonsesne, you can't make a blanket statement like that. Maybe for your coach, 5 is their limit, but that's a personal thing and there are a ton of considerations.

Yes it seems like an odd thing to say. In hindsight, I think he may have meant '5 is a good number for you'... but he was trying to be polite.

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What the weather like? Hotter days will take more out of your per jump, so fewer jumps is the way to go.

I agree. I think this was a huge factor. It was in the high 70s low 80s on the ground (~32 at altiitude). A nice cool day.

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Are you packing yourself, or using a packer? How hard is your rig to pack? Again, look at the physical output of packing, and factor that into how many jumps you can make.

I didn't pack once that day.

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What about your physical conditioning? How much sleep did you get the night before? Are you staying hydrated and fed?

I am in much better shape this year compared to last... ran a couple of 5ks & a 10k earlier in the summer.

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The list goes on, but I have to say that 5 jumps is a very light day of jumping for most. As others have mentioned, pay attention to yourself and be sure to say 'when' before you reach your limit, not after.

If you want to make more jumps, consider the above factors and account for them. Get to bed early the night before, be sure to bring drinks and healthy snacks to the DZ, and make sure you're in good shape.

first of all welcome to the sport and glad to hear you are having a ball. i know you be eager to do many jumps as possible in a day, yes it is great fun and excillerating. one piece of advice is Quality is much better than quantity, you are at the stage where you should really learn to improve the skills you have learned at the beginning and learn more and newer flying skills. my advice to a few coach jumps with an expiereinced person, i know it might cost a few bucks but it will be money well spent. you will learn a lot more and really improve your flying skills. which will stand to you in the long run. when i started i was like you, jumped out of everything that was going, i was building on some bad habits, next thing i have 500 jumps plus, i go to a boggie got into some 20ways and found out i could not really fly correctly i was a bit embarresed and had to start to get more coaching again. so that is my 2cents worth.

I'm off to Elsinore in Oct and expect to do 6 per day and probably pack 4 out of those 6. I think this should mean I get the most enjoyment out of the 2 week holiday.

Juz

6 per day in Elsinore is EASY if you're keen I did 14 back to back loads with 2 rigs on a late start early finish, the first 3 loads on one rig. The Twin Otter I was on all day did about 16 loads and there was another running as well, and this was in January so the days were much shorter.. Im largely stupid when it comes to looking out for myself so a couple of people were bringing me sandwiches and drinks throughout the day, cause i forget to eat and drink

Ive done a few 15+ days (most of them tandems) and have allays felt great but I just did 43 jumps in 3 days (36 were tandems) and then a weather day and then another 10 and I am looking forward to my day off tomorrow, my arms hurt.

In my student program, I limit students to 3 jumps per day, max (assuming they meet ground training minimums), until they are off AFF (Level 7 or CAT E), After that, it is 5 jumps per day, max, until A license. It may be somewhat arbitrary, but students are overloaded as it is and I think my limits are a reasonable balance between safety and student enthusiasm. And it is not a number . . . if the student is not prepped and ready, no jump. These are max's, not anything else.

If you feel fine, sure, why not. Personally, I think 10-15 jumps in a day is enough for me. I'm usually pretty tired then. As a student I did maximum 3 a day. When I had about 50 jumps, I started doing closer to 10.